^Not sure moving Devito to full time NT is a good idea with our run D taking a step back this year. Wouldn't want to lean on him so heavily. Pouha should be priority, Devito should def be brought back if cap permits. Those guys coupled with [hopefully] improving guys like Wilkerson, Dixon, Ellis and Pitoitua would make for a promising group.
I think we should keep both. Ellis has barely sniffed the field let's not let these guys walk and open up another hole on defense because these younger guys aren't ready. Plus we need depth on the line if we keep only one and he gets hurt then we are depending on 3 guys with little experience and have no one in back of them if they can't handle it.
Wait... people that think they know football have called Pouha a top 5 NFL nose tackle. Why would he settle for backup money?
Hmmmm..... Maybe he really ISN'T a top 5 NFL Nose Tackle after all? Perhaps some here are overrating Pouha just a bit.....
What about this, keep Pouha but kick him over to DE and play Ellis and MTV at NT, would soemthing like this work?
I'm sure it would work situationally, but not full time. His fit at NT is predicated by his ability to leverage under an interior lineman and through the gap. He doesn't have the quickness to leverage outside on the edge all day long and I think he'd be a liability on outside rushes.
What!? Since when was Pouha top 5 NT in the league? Ok. I don't know football. Thank you for the enlightenment.
we need to keep pouha he was great last year...i wouldn't mind if devito is let go. i think ellis will fill in nicely for him and will learn enough in the in camp/pre-season
I think you have to bring both back. Both have been instrumental to our DL solid performance against the run. I also am intrigued with the possibility of going to a 4-3 once Bart Scott leaves and moving DeVito to DT and having Pouha continue to play the nose. Kenrick Ellis' legal issues still up in the air we will need to think about adding in more depth, so I would hate to lose our starters.
he's played ok when he's been in...just needs more time to grow hence i mentioned he'll learn in training camp/pre-season
I didn't see him get in very often last year and that's quite telling. And when he did play I didn't see much positive. I know he had one decent game, but nothing to get excited about in the others. I would agree that a full offseason would be beneficial, but now his trial has been postponed until the end of May which is during the time when you see a lot of OTA and mini camps. How focused is going to be able to be?
good point - i didnt hear/read about the trial being postponed...if that is the case, then yea it would be an issue esp if he gets convicted and we lose him for the reason w/o having a reasonable backup
Not to rain on your parade, but you want to ask 2 guys who are starters on this team (who by the way are pretty damn cheap starters), to play for backup money, without any real options behind them? You guys saw the run defense suffer mightily when Devito missed time this year. It's obvious we don't have a backup at the position who is ready to step into a full time role opposite Mo-Wilk. I just wanted to point out how silly the bolded is. Name me starters anywhere in the NFL who want to come in and expect be starters on some NFL franchise, yet only be making backup money. That doesn't happen unless you draft a guy in the mid rounds to do it.
I'm not sure why so many people are fine with the idea of letting Devito go. I say bring them both back. Neither one of them is getting paid a salary that's out of line with what they bring to the team (a la Pace/Scott/Holmes) and when Pouha is on he's a monster. I think people just assume they would be easy to replace because they're not flashy players but I don't see either of them as easily replaceable, especially when your talking about bringing in guys for less money - that could turn into a disaster.
I find it hard to believe that people are alright with letting Pouha go. Here is an excerpt from ProFootballFocus, which IMO is the best football site out there (other than TGG, of course) as they watch and grade every player on every single play from every game of the season. This is from their 2011 All Pro Team article, in which Pouha was the topped ranked 3-4 NT: 3-4 Nose Tackle: Sione Pouha, New York Jets Second Team: Jay Ratliff, Dallas Cowboys When you look at some of the most dominant players in the NFL you rarely hear the name Sione Pouha. You should because ever since the Jet was made a starter after Kris Jenkins going down he’s become the most dominant nose tackle in the league with this year his best. Ratliff isn’t the run defender Pouha is, but does offer something else to the 2nd team with his ability to generate pressure. Outside of these two you’re hard pressed to find any nose tackles who have really impressed. The entire article: http://www.profootballfocus.com/blog/2012/01/05/2011-pff-all-pro-team/
Mmm... I don't think teams will want to invest that much on a guy who's 33 (although he started playing late, no wear-and-tear etc etc). I can see him getting around 4 mill. Remember Aubrayo Franklin? Everyone was supposed to spend crazy money on him and in the end he signed a 1yr deal with the Saints. This year there are quite a bit of NTs available (Soliai, Pouha, Franklin, Garay, etc) so I'm guessing Pouha will have less leverage. There are actually quite a good number of FA DL that fit in the 34D: http://walterfootball.com/freeagents2012DT.php
This is the first season in a while which im not worried about what happens with our d-line. It would be a lot more comforting if we signed both but if I had to pick I'd pick the samoan
tttthhhhiiiisssss.... totally agree 42 - imo the dline is a bright spot for the next 2-3 years provided at least devito is kept around and ellis develops..... thats why its sooooo important that the LB position is upgraded. we need youth and speed there. can u imagine what an upgrade to the LB group would do for the DL, and vice versa.
